Mop



Patented Nov. 1, 1932 PATENT OFFICE WILLIAM H. HEISE, OF LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA Application filed January 7, 1930. Serial No. 419,061.

My invention relates to mops and particularly to mops for mopping plane surfaces.

Mops now used employ a mop cloth which is secured to the mop handle by a rod or bar clamping means. When such mops are used on plane surfaces, the area over which a pressural contact may be made between the mop cloth and the surface to be cleaned is very small, due to only a small portion of the mop l cloth being included between the rod or bar means and the surface to be cleaned. This is objectionable in that only a small portion of the mop cloth is active in cleaning the surface.

It is an object of my invention to provide a mop in which the mop cloth is secured over a fiat surface so that when the mop is used on a plane surface the area of contact between the mop cloth and the surface to be cleaned 20 will be large, thus utilizing a large portion of the mop cloth.

In the preferred form of my invention I provide a flat surface or a plate member which is pivoted to the mop handle, thus per- 25 mitting the mop handle to be inclined at various angles relative to the surface to be cleaned while the mop cloth is maintained in engagement with the surface to be cleaned. I also secure the mop cloth to the plate mem- 30 her so that the mop cloth is tightly stretched over the flat surface when the mop is used for mopping, and is loosely stretched when it is desired to wring water from the mop cloth.

It is found that when the mop cloth is twisted to wring the water therefrom, each end of the mop cloth is compressed together so that when the mop cloth is untwisted, the mop clot-h does not lie flat on the flat surface.

. Another object is to provide a mop in which the mop cloth is spread out after the mop has been wrung out so that the mop cloth covers the flat surface.

A further object is to provide a mop in above class which is constructed so that it is cheap to manufacture.

Further objects of my invention will be made evident in the ensuing description of a j Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the mop shown 1 in Fig. 1, showing the mop in a wringing position.

Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken as indicated by the line 33 of Fig. 1, showing a resilient extending means of my invention.

Fig. 4 is a sectional view taken the same as Fig. 3, showing the position of the extend.- ing means when the mop cloth is twisted for wringing.

Referring particularly to Figs. 1 and 2, I show a mop 11 of my invention having a handle 12, to the lower end of which is secured a pivoting member 14. The pivoting member 14 is preferably made from sheet metal suitably stamped out to provide a collar 15 which surrounds the lower end of the mop handle 12 and is secured thereto by a bolt 18. Extending from the pivoting member 14 are pivot lugs 19. The pivot lugs 19 are connected by a pivot pin 20 to apair of lugs 22 formed on a plate member 24. The lugs 22 are preferably formed on the plate member 24 intermediate the ends thereof by cutting out portions of the plate member 24 and turning these portions up, as clearly shown in Fig. 1. The plate member 24 is thus pivoted to the handle 12 about the axis of the pivot pin 20 and provides a flat surface 25 on the under side thereof, the edges of the plate member 24 being preferably curved upward, as shown at 26, so that no sharp edges are formed adjacent the flat surface 25.

Secured to one end of the plate member 24 is a forward mop holding element 28 in the form of a heavy wire, side arms 29 of which are secured to the plate member 24 by attachment lugs 30 preferably formed by cutting out portions of the plate member 24 and rolling them over the side arms 29. Stops 31 formed on the plate member 24 engage the ends of the side arms 29 and prevent movement of the mop holding element 28 towards the rear of the plate member 24, the stops 31 being preferably made by making cuts in the plate member 24 and forcing upwardly that portion of the metal defined by the cuts. As shown in Figs. 1 and 3, a transverse arm 32 of the forward mop holding element 23 is displaced downward a slight degree, and is curved backwards toward the plate member 24.

As clearly shown in Fig. 3, secured over the curved portion of the transverse arm 32 is a spiral compression spring 34, the ends 35 of which are pointed and penetrate a mop cloth 36 which is threaded over the spring 34 and the transverse arm 32 of the element- 28. The mop cloth 36 is preferably made from a rectangular piece of absorbent cloth, the ends of which are sewed together or interwoven so that the cloth forms a continuous loop. The arm 32 extends inside the outer end of the loop and may be placed therein by withdrawing the mop holding element 23 forward, inserting the transverse arm 32 in the loop at the forward end of the mop cloth 36 and then replacing the side arms 29 in position on the plate member 24.

As shown in Fig. 1, the mop cloth 36 extends backward below the flat surface 25 and the rearward end thereof is secured to a rear mop cloth holding element 40 formed of a heavy wire having a journal 41 which is rotatable in a bushing 42 secured in an opening in the handle 12. One end of the rear mop cloth holding element 40 is bent to form a mop supporting portion 43 which extends through the upper loop in the mop cloth 36 and parallel portions 44 which extend over said-upper loop. The upper end of the journal 41 is bent to form a crank 45, an operating handle 46 being pivotally secured to the end of the crank 44. The rear mop cloth holding element 40 and crank constitute the wringing means for the mop.

The length of the mop cloth 36 is preferably made such that when the plate member 24 is pivoted relative to the handle 12 to a mop ping position, as shown in Fig. 1, the mop cloth 36 is tightly stretched over the mopping surface 25 between the transverse arm 32 and the mop supporting portion 43 of the wringer means. In order to guide the mop cloth 36 so that it will assume a central position and entirely cover the flat surface 25, a. guide notch 50 is formed in the plate member 24. A portion of the mop cloth 36 may extend into the guide notch 50 and thus guide the mop cloth 36 to a central position on the flat surface 25 when the plate member 24 is pivoted relative to the handle 12.

When the mop 11 is used for mopping plane surfaces, it is moved to the mopping position as shown in Fig. 1, and the mog cloth 36 is wet with water, although it may be used dry, if desired. The mop 11 is then forced downward by the operator against the surface to be cleaned so that the plate member 24 is rotated to bring the fiat surface 25 parallel to the surface to be cleaned. In this position the plate member 24 compressed the mop cloth 36 between the flat surface 25 and the surface to be cleaned, thus utilizing substantially all of the lower surface of the mop cloth 36 for cleaning the surface. Due to the handle 12 being pivoted to the plate member 24, the plate member 24 may be maintained in this position while the handle 12 is inclined by the operator at various angles relative to the surface to be cleaned, during the cleaning process.

, When it is desired to rinse the dirt out of the mop 11, the plate member 24 may be pivoted relative to the handle 12 to the wringing position as shown in Fig. 2, the handle 12 extending into the notch 50 in order to allow the plate member 24 to be rotated to an angled position relative to the handle 12. When the plate member 24 is in the wringing position, the mop cloth 36 hangs loosely between the wringer means and the transverse arm 32, in which position any dirt absorbed by the mop cloth 36 may be rinsed out. In order to wring the water out of the mop cloth 36, the wringer means may be actuated by rotating the crank 45 by means of the operating handle 46, thus causing the mop cloth 36 to be twisted as shown in Fig. 2. Due to the strong construction of the wringer means, considerable force may be employed on the operating handle 46 so as to tightly twist the mop cloth 36 and effectively squeeze the water therefrom. WVhen the mop cloth 36 has been wrung out, the crank 45 is turned in the opposite direction until the mop cloth 36 is no longer twisted. The mop 11 may then be moved to the mopping position by pressing the forward end thereof on the floor, the mop cloth 36 being guided to a central position on the flat surface 25 by the guide means 50.

It should be noted that, due to the curved construction of the forward end of the arm 32, the forward end ofv the mop cloth 36 is compressed laterally along the arm 32, as shown in Fig. 4, when the crank 45 of the wring-er means is operated to twist the mop cloth 36. This compresses the spring 34 due to its engagement with the mop cloth 36. When the wringing operation has been completed and the crank 5 is rotated in an opposite direction so as to untwist the mop cloth 36, the resilient spring 34 extends the end of the mop cloth 36 to the mopping position in which it is stretched to cover the entire curved portion of the arm 32, this position being clearly shown in Fig. 3. It will be noted that by the use of the spring 34 the mop cloth 36 is always spread out evenly along the curved portion of the arm 32 and hence, evenly covers the fiat surface 25. A

spring of this nature may be employed on the transverse portion 413 of the rear mop cloth holding element 40, if desired, but I have found that the mop cloth 36 usually extends outward to fill the length of the transverse portion 43 without the use of a spring 34.

One of the important features of my invention is the use of a flat surface over which the mop cloth 36 is stretched, this flat surface permitting a large portion of the mop cloth 36 to be actively engaged with the surface to be cleaned during the cleaning process. By pivoting the member 2a to the handle 12, I am enabled'to maintain the flat surface parallel with the surface to be cleaned, while the handle 12 is inclined at various'angles relative to the surface to be cleaned. The use of the wringer means also eliminates the use of the hands for wringing the mop cloth 36, since it is only necessary to turn the wringer means by means of the operating handle 46. The use of the guide means is also important since it permits of always guiding the mop cloth 36 to a central position on the flat surface 25 when the mop 11 is moved from the wringing position to the mopping posltion.

It should be noted that the method of constructing th mop permits it to be cheaply manufactured. Thus both the pivot member 14 and the plate member 24: may be manufactured from sheet metal material and the necessary projections thereon may be out there from. It should also be noted that although I have stated that the mop cloth 36 may be in the nature of an absorbent cloth, it should be understood that it may be made from any suitable material which is commonly em ployed in mops. Other modifications may be made without departing from the spirit of my invention as claimed.

I claim as my invention:

1. In a mop, the combination of: a handle; a plate member pivoted to said handle about a point intermediate the ends of said plate member; a rod member carried by one end of said plate member; a wringer means carried by said handle; a mop cloth having one end thereof mounted over said rod member and having the other end thereof secured to said wringer means; and an open coil spring on said rod member engaging the end of said mop cloth for extending said end of said mop cloth to a mopping position after said mop cloth has been wrung out by said wringer means.

2. In a mop, the combination of: a mop cloth; means to twist the mop cloth to wring moisture therefrom; a member around which said mop cloth passes; and a spring, the ends of said spring engaging said cloth and adapted to be compressed by said cloth when said cloth is twisted, and to expand and fiat-ten out the cloth when said cloth is untwisted.

3. In a mop, the combination of: a mop cloth; means toltwistI the mop cloth to; wring being adapted to be compressed by said cloth when said cloth is twisted, and to'expand and flatten out the cloth when said cloth is untwisted; V w

4. In a mop, the combination of: a mop cloth, a support forione end of said cloth;

means for rotating said support in such a manner as tOtWlSt said cloth and wring moisture therefrom; a member around which sald mop cloth passes; and a spring, the ends of said spring engaging said cloth and normally spreading said cloth on said member and adapted tobe compressed when said cloth is twisted. V

-5. In a mop, the combination of: a mop .cloth, a support for one end of said cloth;

means for rotating said support in such a manneras to twist said cloth and wring moisture therefrom; a member around which said mop cloth passes; and a spring surrounding said member inside said cloth, the ends of said spring engaging said cloth and normally spreading said cloth on said member and adapted to be compressed when said cloth is twisted.

6. In a mop, the combination of: a mop cloth; a support for one end of said cloth; means for rotating said support in such a manner as to twist said cloth and wring moisture therefrom; a member around which said mop cloth passes; and a spring, the ends of said spring engaging said cloth and normally spreading said cloth on said member and adapted to be compressed when said cloth is twisted, said member being so bent that tension on said mop cloth tends to compress said spring.

7. In a mop, the combination of: a mop cloth; a support for one end of said cloth; means for rotating said support in such a manner as to twist said cloth and wring moisture therefrom; a member around which said mop cloth passes; and a spring surrounding said member inside said cloth, the ends of said spring engaging said cloth and normally spreading said cloth on said member and adapted to be compressed when said cloth is twisted, said member being so bent that tension on said mop cloth tends to compress said spring.

8. In a mop, the combination of: a handle; a base pivoted to said handle; a mop cloth; a member associated with said base around which an end of said mop cloth passes;

said member, said spring normally holding said mop cloth in extended position on said member.

9. In a mop, the combination of: a handle; a plate member pivoted to said handle about a point intermediate the ends of said plate member; a rod member carried by one end of said plate member; a .Wringer means carried by said handle; a mop cloth having one end thereof mounted over said rod member and having the other end thereof secured to said .Wringer means; and an open coil spring on said rod member engaging the end of said mop cloth for extending the end of said mop cloth to a mopping position after said mop cloth has been wrung out by said Wringer means, said spring having its end portions penetrating said mop cloth to prevent creeping on said rod member.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand at Los Angeles, California, this 2nd day of January, 1930.

-WILLIAM H. HEISE. 

